Game Design Master ClassIn-Person
Friday, Dec 12, 2025
9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m
Location To Be Announced
Games and play are ancient forms of expression, just as fundamental to being human as making pictures, music, and stories. Yet only recently has game design emerged as a formal discipline. In this hands-on master class, we’ll explore the fundamentals of game design through interactive exercises—no computers allowed. Why games? Because everyone, especially students, loves them. And because they foster critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity. We’ll analyze and modify classic games like rock-paper-scissors and invent new ones from scratch. Come ready to participate, design, and play.
STEAM
Eric Zimmerman
Eric Zimmerman is a game designer who invents new ways to play, on and off the computer. He was the co-founder of Gamelab, a NYC-based game studio that worked with companies like LEGO and created hit games like Diner Dash. Other projects range from smartphone games that deconstruct classic literature to card games where players debate culture. Eric co-founded The Institute of Play, a nonprofit that designed schools with a curriculum based on play as the model for learning. With architect Nathalie Pozzi, he designs installations for MoMA and the Smithsonian American Art Museum. He is a professor at the NYU Game Center in Tisch School of the Arts, a program that he founded and helped to design. His books include Rules of Play with Katie Salen, The Rules We Break, and The Green Games Guide about sustainable tabletop design. More info: ericzimmerman.com.